Forever Lost: A Fairytale for the Forgotten
by Dark.Silver.Flower
Summary: She was taken as a slave by the Immortal race. Their fall does not mark the end of her suffering. With her new found freedom Steel must make peace with a world that rejects her as well as piece together her forgotten past.
1. Prologue

_Prologue_

During the first Apocalypse, the Guardians had fought for their freedom for nearly one hundred years until the Immortals Race was quelled into the blackness of the Southern Wasteland. The mortal Guardians (who became widely known as great warriors) established an loosely tied empire from the rubble of a fallen Earth that reached the borders of the Silver Plains in the north to the grand cities of Deos, in the south. The new nations, including Light, the empire of the Guardians, that had been formed could finally exist in peace when the only evil the world of Avel had ever known had been vanquished into the darkness of the eternal night...

Or so they thought...

Four hundred years later the world began slipping into the evil clutches of the Immortal Race once again. Their ultimate power to control the minds and bodies of other peoples made them a terrifying horror. As they gradually began to once again spread their demonic nation across the continent, the world was only doomed to feel their wrath at one point or another...

_An Empire will fall and the second Apocalypse shall declare itself the force to do away with the mortal kingdoms, once and for all._

We open our story in Madrid, a small city named after a long-destroy metropolis, located on the narrow stretch of Deos bordering the outer forests of the Wastelands. In the modern time, medieval and modern architecture have combined in contemporary style. Pedestrians walked along narrow streets made of large, flat stones among massive cobblestone buildings while massive loads of materials for transport traveled a more modern route, underground in massive transport pipes of carts destined for pre-programmed locations throughout Avel.

I was not born here, but this was once the city I called my home. A beautiful piece of art in the heart of a formerly war-torn world. A fine gem in the ashes of a burnt out fire. My God, paradise is now lost.


	2. Chapter 1

_Chapter 1_

Walking down the cobblestone streets in late June, the hot, earthy air stung my through. A slow, strong wind blew fine dust from the "forests" of the wastelands that were nothing more than petrified trees that bore no leaves. The dusty, earthen soil that was almost desert-like. I tightened my white cloak around me and pressed my white scarf closer to my nose and mouth. My long, black hair hung lazily down my back from under the thin scarf that covered my head and lower face and blew gently in the breeze. My green eyes barely dared to peer out.

That day I was stopped by a middle-aged woman who I knew very well. She was in her fourties and quite plump with her dark hair pulled back in a knot. She covered her mouth with her sleeve as she waved me into the shop where she worked.

I entered the dim shop and stood in the doorway with my back to the dazzling brightness of a desert noon. The plump woman stood in front of me and at her side stood a small, lean girl. I pulled my scarf off from my face and let it hang around my neck.

"You know you should be careful around noontime, Steel. You really shouldn't be outside before 4:30. Your skin... oh God, Steel. You must have been burnt to a crisp to have turned that color... Well, anyways... how have you been?" began the woman.

"Fine," I said. I stared at my hands for a moment. The dull bronzing my skin had taken on since the beginning of the spring months had turned me an unusual tone that any Eastern girl should not have at any point in her life. My usually translucent skin was dry and almost caramel colored at that point. "I have not been very busy lately. I stopped working for Ichogo's shop a while back... the stress there was killing me."

"I understand, Steel. Thistle used to take additional school lessons from Ame who still works there." The woman paused and looked at my expression of restrained concern. "I know she wasn't very kind to you, Steel. Thistle is loosing her liking of her as well. Thistle's going into middle school soon, you know."

I looked down and smiled at the girl. "Hey Thistle, you been keeping out of trouble?"

The girl looked a bit timidly at me. She had not seen me in months, it was to be expected. "I... look at what I drew, Steel! You can have it if you want..."

I took the worn piece of school paper and smile. "It's a very pretty pony, Thistle... did you read about them in any books?"

"Yea! Ame gave me a pretty picture book and it had a lot of ponies in it! She says that there are no more ponies in the world... is that true, Steel?"

It was one of the horrible truths of the new world we were living in. "No, Thistle. There are no ponies in these days. My grandmother migrated here from America... what was once called America, I mean. She told me when I was about your age that there used to be ponies everywhere and that every little girl dreamed of having a pony one day. Some of those little girls eventually did have ponies for pets, you know."

"I would have loved a pet pony..." The little girl looked very sad. Her blue eyes cast to the floor. Her mother placed her hand on top of Thistle's head and softly touched her sandy colored hair.

"Steel..." She began "Thistle hasn't seen you in such a long time and I have a lot of work to do today. Could you take her for the day? Maybe tonight you two can go down to the valley tonight... Angel Valley, you know which one." She quickly looked away as if she had suggested I take her precious child to the Ashen Valley, a dead, burnt meadow of charred trees and remnants of ancient battles.

"I would be more than happy too." I smiled. People said that I had a gift with children. Thistle had an unusual liking of me. "Thistle, we can leave whenever you like. Grab your cloaks, we're going to my apartment first."

The girl sped off into the back room and came back wearing a pale green cloak with a built-in hood and clap that bound the cloak's collar around the wearer's lower face. In her arms she held a heavier cloak that was deep blue in color and was thicker to keep her warm against the cool desert nights. "... I'm ready to go".

"'Kay, _on y va!_" I said with a great grin on my face and a dramatic gesture of pointing my hand to the ceiling.

"What does _'On u va_' mean?

I couldn't help but laugh. "Haha. It means 'One goes there', it's French. _On y va. _Like 'let's go', only less demanding."

"I get it now..." She smiled at me and then grabbed me by the arm and ran, practically dragged me out of the shop. "Bye, Mom! I'll see you later!" The poor woman didn't even have a chance to reply before we were halfway down the street.

…

The cobblestones had turned to firm dirt and the dust storm had settled before we had reached my small apartment on the other side of the city. The building were very tall and made of large, grayish stones and stood brilliantly against the now blue skies.

Three stories up we were in my two room apartment. There was a ceiling light in either room (and the bathroom), a small kitchen in the corner of the main room, a smallish bed in the tiny bedroom, a petite table with a silver tea set and two chairs, and a large, squishy sofa.

"WOW! You have a really small house, Steel!" The girl said in amazement. She promptly kicked off her shoes and jumped on the sofa. I took my time and walked to the small refrigerator and brought out two bottles of iced tea.

"Well, I have no family, Thistle, so the people who run this city gave me this apartment and some food every month. Beggers can't be choosers, you know." I sat next to her on the couch. I handed her her iced tea which she took with exasperation.

She gulped down half her iced tea. "What does that mean, Steel?"

"What does what mean?"

"The thing you said... about the beggers"

"Oh, that means that if you are desperate enough to have something you cannot be too picky about the things people give you for free." I sipped my iced tea.

"What do you have? ...are you a begger? You're only sixteen..."

"In a metaphorical sense... I don't actually beg for money but the government is kind enough to support me."

"I see..." The girl was quiet for a moment. "I really like being with you, Steel."

I looked at the kid sitting next to me. "You're not bad yourself, squirt." I messed up her hair and she sat squirming and giggling on the couch.

Just another day in paradise.


	3. Chapter 2

_Chapter 2_

The grey skies were fading to a distinct shade of desert orange. Soft winds blew across the barren landscape, too soft to kick up the dreaded sand and dirt. I could see from my apartment window the beautiful summer morning pushing its way into the melancholy hearts of the people of Madrid and all of Deos. A few shop keepers dared to push the heavy wooden door and thick curtains from the store fronts and let the lightening morning sun fill the corners of the cold, stone stores. The pale grey streets was glowing with morning light and in the distance, a few streets away, I could make out the shape of the vast desert and the long road that lead away from the Wastelands and into the interior of Light, the kingdom of the Guardians.  
>A soft sound awakened me from my trance. Thistle lay sprawled on the couch, her left arm and leg dangling off and her head pressed into the corner of the tousled a bit and then sat up.<br>"... errrrrrr..." She rubbed her eyes with the back of her tiny hands. "I didn't sleep so well..."  
>"Haha, you seemed to have passed out right when you lied down on the couch, Thistle... what would you like for breakfast?" I closed the curtains that covered the large stone cutout window and I made my way for the kitchen in the corner of the room. "How about... some cereal? Do you like rice cereal? … it seems to be the only kind you can find now..."<br>"Sure" The little girl plopped back on the sofa and stared at the ceiling. The morning light glowed palely through the curtain and illuminated the window. Thistle made popping sounds with her mouth and reached her pale arm to the ceiling. "... Steel... can I ask you something?"  
>I was reaching for the milk in the back of my desolate refrigerator. "Yeah, anything, Thistle." I poured the cereal into two chipped bowls and poured the last of the milk on top of it so it would be at least somewhat edible.<br>"About that country you mentioned the other day... America? What... what is it... or... what _was_ it?"  
>I paused and looked at the girl. I held the empty milk jar in my hand while I spoke. "America... this has to do with the story about my grandmother, right? Well, you see..." I leaned on the counter and put down the milk jar. "... a long time ago there was once a land of prosperity and hopes and dreams and everything that is now gone in this world. That country was 'America'. There were hills and valleys and oceans and forests. Bright, intelligent people once lived there, some say the most intelligent people in the world.<br>"When my grandmother was a little girl she used to live in a tiny cottage overlooking the coast in a state called 'Maine'. Then _horrible things happened._ Some say it was the wrath of a god, some say it was just nature taking its course, but my grandmother always used to say that humanity had it coming upon themselves. Over the years the people of that country, well... the people of the Earth... they had poisoned the soil and polluted the air. One day, the Earth shook with a mighty quake and the crust of the Earth split in two. This is also the first time human kind had ever seen the Immortals. Most believed them to be hideous daemons who had taken the form of humans and bring vengeance upon those who had brought the curse upon the pitiful Earth... then again, my grandmother used to say we are all responsible.

America had an interesting ordeal during the desperation after the quake. A horrible and corrupt politician play the heartstrings of the bleeding hearts and the souls of the compassionate who lived in America. When she took office she enforced a string of harsh laws and amendments and turned the once beautiful democracy into a despot state. Many attempted to flee the country, but few were successful. My grandmother was one of the lucky few who escaped the would-be genocide. It was like the 1930s and 40s all over again." I put the palm of my hand against my face.

"So... all those people... the ones who didn't escape... they died, didn't they?"

I nodded. "The immortal race ran rampart in the Americas but in time they brought about their own destruction. In Europe they have attempted to invade through the Balkans but the people of Light, the Guardians, us, we have held our ground and kept them away even when the other Mortal nations have fallen into the Immortals' tyranny."

Thistle looked overwhelmed by all of this new information. She twirled her sandy blond hair with her fingers. "I think... I think we can beat them, Steel. The Immortals, I mean. When we have so much to lose... there's no way they can defeat us."

"You speak very bravely for a ten year old girl." I handed her the bowl of cereal and a spoon.

"Hey! I'm going to be eleven in three weeks!" She stuffed her mouth full of the bland cereal.

"Right, right. How could I forget?" I looked at my miserable bowl. "I really wish they could still grow corn... that used to make the best cereal. They can't grow it now. The climate's not right here and it costs less to grow rice anyways. You almost ready to leave, Thistle?"

Thistle sipped the last of the milk from her bowl and grabbed her pale green cloak. I put the bowls on the counter and grabbed my white one and dressed quickly. I locked the door on our way out and stared back at the building as we walked away on the dirt road.

_Something... something just doesn't feel right. It's like... I'm not coming back here... it's almost... uninviting._

"What's wrong, Steel?"

I turned around to face Thistle. "Oh, nothing, nothing. Let's get going. We want to get to the valley before it gets too hot."

The dirt roads gave back to cobblestone and from there we continued to walk. Thistle kicked smalls stones along the road and I trailed behind. My mind was still not at rest. The summer sun began to rise a bit higher and I figured it must have been about seven in the morning. We crossed the cobblestone marketplace which was full of vendors bustling around, putting up their large tents in the square that was shaded by the thin sheets that connected the roof of each stall to the next making pathways of cool shade for customers.

We exeted the market place and crossed the southern part of the city and headed east, parallel to the Wastelands. The earth was clay-like until we reached a giant depression in the ground. At the bottom of the valley there was sparse grass and many ancient trees, the few who still dared to exist. They must have been hundreds of years old. They cast much shade and there were many strange rock formations, most of which seemed to represent human-like creatures. Angels, they say.

"Steel! WOW! Look at this tree!" Thistle ran down to a tree and attempted to climb it. "How do they all stay alive?"

I was looking at one of the angel-like statues and replied "They say this valley is a gift from God himself... but the truth is that there's a spring beneath the Earth and it feeds this valley. The trees are safe from the dust storms because of the side of the valley". I placed my hand on the smooth, white stone. "This stone is a lot different than the stone they used to build the city..."

The morning sun was getting higher. Eight, perhaps. The lovely shades of morning had been replaced with the crystal blue skies of a clear day. The air was a bit stale from the last day's dust storm but a couple of fluffy white clouds still dared to cross the morning sky on their ventures to other countries, to be seen by other peoples, to be questioned by other mortals such as ourselves.

Thistle was sitting on a low branch of the tree. Her cloak hung limp in the dead air and she was staring at the horizon, a look of surprise and intrigue on her face. "... what's that on the horizon... Steel... who are those people?" She continued to stare into the distance.

I whipped around and followed her gave to the horizon. I shaded my eyes with my hand and looked at the dark figures who were approaching. They were two men with light skin and silvery hair. They were dressed in black robes and seemed to be coming directly at us.

"THISTLE! RUN! WE HAVE TO GET OUT OF HERE!" I pulled the little girl out of the tree and grabbed her arm. We ran in the opposite direction, up the side of the valley. "Those... they're not people, Thistle. Those are _them._ Those are the Immortals. How... how did they get this far into Light? I don't understand!"

We continued to run until we exited the hill and I felt a sharp pull on my leg. I had caught my foot in a dead tree root and had fallen on my face. Thistle fell on top of me.

"WE HAVE TO KEEP RUNNING!" I screamed.

My knee was gushing blood and I could hear their approach. I tried to push Thistle on but she refused to budge because she was afraid to go on on her own, I could see it in her eyes. Within a few seconds they were around us. They stared at the little girl and then at my knee.

"KILL ME! DAMNIT, I DON'T GIVE A DAMN! Just kill me and let her go!" I thrust myself before them, my leg was still numb. "JUST TAKE ME!" The pain was throbbing, perhaps my leg was broken.

The first of the Immortals, a tall, lean man pulled me up by my cloak and held my arms behind me. He was surprisingly strong... the again, they are not mortal.

The second grabbed the astonished Thistle by the hair as she tried to escape. She fell to the ground and the Immortal, a shorter, stubbier man, pulled her up by her hair. She obeyed like a begrudging servant. "We have better plans for you two." His red eyes gleamed with evil, the evil that naturally existed in the hearts of all imorrtals. Thistle began shaking and soon tears began streaming down her freckled face. her deep blue eyes with swelling and I could see the fright and anguish she was experiencing. Something snapped inside of me.

The tall man held his grip tighter against me as I began thrashing against him. "DON'T YOU TOUCH HER YOU BASTARD!" I screamed and thrashed and shook my head from side to side, hysterical. _This is not happening... save me... anyone... save us. Dear God of the mortal races, do not abandon me now._

I felt a sharp prick in my arm. I felt heavy, heavy, heavy... "Just...let her... go... take..." I blacked out.


	4. Chapter 3

_Chapter 3_

_Ugh...__where __the __hell __am __I?__ My __head...__oh...__my __head.__ I __think __I __just __hit __it __on __a __rock.__ I __don__'__t __want __to __open __my __eyes.__ I __can __hear __people __whispering.__ I __really __don__'__t __want __to __open __my __eyes.__ They__'__re __staring __at __me, __I __can __feel __their __eyes.__ I __have __to __get __up.__ I __just __can__'__t __lay __on __this __stone __floor._  
>I didn't really get to decide whether I wanted to stand up or not because I was dragged to my feet a moment after having been dropped on the silvery stone floor. The fall had awakened me but made me feel more dazed than ever. My cloak somewhat choked me as the guard pulled me to my feet and thrust me before the throne.<br>"Well... what do we have here? You appear to be a rather healthy girl." A tall, pale woman with long silver hair was seated at the black ebony throne. Her bright red eyes appeared to be glazed over as if she were blind. She stared past me as she spoke. "Tell me, what is your name?"  
>"Why the hell should I tell you?" I spat. The burly guard tightened his grip on me and I was nearly lifted off the floor by my cloak.<br>"I don't want you to kill her, Giles." The woman sternly said to the guard who was choking me. "Let her go, she cannot run."  
>I was dropped to the floor with a great thud. I gasped as I knelt on my hands and knees before slowly standing up. I knew a look of crude resentment marked my face, but at this point I was pissed enough to not care. I looked around me. The tall woman was most defiantly blind and she sat on her large, cold looking throne at top a small set of stairs before me. The floors and walls were made of a silvery stone. I could not see much more of the large throne room because about thirty guards lined the walls from end to end, silvery haired and standing at perfect attention.<br>"I said what is your name, girl?" The woman looked more bored than annoyed, although I thought it best to not anger her further.  
>"Steel... Steel Heartland." I said with great dignity. I had pride in what I was. I was a mortal with nothing to hide. I was not like the Immortals; spiteful, murderous creatures.<br>"You seem to be rather healthy, besides that nasty knot on your head from being dropped on my throne room floor. They must have given you some very heavy tranquilizers to make you pass out so long."  
>I couldn't help but stare in wonder. <em>What <em>_is __going __on __here?__ Where __am __I?_  
>"My name is Arabella of Talc. I have a specially purpose for you." She seemed to look right trough me. I could feel the chill from her absent stare as it cast through my bones.<br>"What did you do with the girl known as Thistle?" I finally demanded. I sounded rather hot headed but I was surprised I could say anything in the state of shock I was experiencing.  
>She seemed to think about it for a moment and then replied, coldly "No one else was brought in with you, if that is what you mean." She stood and glances out the window to the side of the room. Her long silver hair hung down to her waist and it shimmered in the sunlight streaming through the window. "Although I was born blind I have always enjoyed the feeling of the sun's warmth. Not even a blind old woman such as I can live in total darkness." She stared on. "... Silver Canyon." She finally said. "He wishes to have Silver Canyon, although I don't see much point in it."<br>"Who is _he_ and what does he want with the capital region?" I demanded, stupefied and impressed.  
>"<em>He<em>is the King of the Immortals, who's name we do not speak out of respect..." She sighed. "But mostly out of fear." She sat back in her throne and set her gaze in my direction. "You were taken from outside the city of Madrid in the region of Deos. I do not understand the point of it all; there is a large desert north of Deos and makes a difficult passage to Silver Canyon. I do not understand it at all..."  
>I was growing furious. She would not tell me anything useful and I felt as if I had been kidnapped for some petty and pointless scheme. "Well, why do you want me?"<br>Arabella scoffed. "_I_ do not want you. Our King thought you would serve a dutiful purpose but I suppose not. The soldiers were to kidnap an elder of the city, not a pitiful child like _you.__"_  
>"Pitiful? <em>Pitiful?<em> It seems to me that _you_ are the one moping in your castle over the past that you could not have; the beauty that was taken from you by something as merciless and beastly as time..." The words poured from my lips... but were they really mine? _I __am __still __young; __I __do __not __know __why __I__'__m __saying __this._ I looked around as the guard closed closer around me, watching my every move.  
>Arabella looked at me with an amused sneer "Time both heals and destroys, child. But you cannot understand that yet..." Her attention turned towards the guards. "Well, then... guards!" She clapped her hands and I was dragged through the throne room, still too weak to fight back.<br>"You will serve your purpose none-the-less!" She shouted after me, almost gleeful.  
>I was pulled into the dark hallway and two guards held me firmly.<br>_I __still __do __not __understand.__ Who __was __that __woman?...__she __doesn__'__t __seem __to __have __much__ "__respect__" __for __the __King __as __she __swears __one __must __have.__ I __suppose __she __was __the __lordess __of __this __region...__but __her __demeanour __seems __quite...__odd.__ And __Thistle...__where __is __Thistle...?_  
>Something was being forced around my head. I began to struggle. Things were getting very bright... <em>Thistle...<em>_Thistle...__Thistle!_  
>And then nothing really mattered.<br>And the courtyards went white, and the fields and the deserts of Deos... and I too lost my sight, one way or another.


End file.
